THE deaths of at least 21 cocklepickers in Morecambe Bay was a "tragic accident" a jury heard yesterday.

John Bromley-Davenport QC, representing alleged gang master Lin Liang Ren, said his client was innocent of the "gross negligence" which, it is claimed, led to the deaths.

He told Preston Crown Court there were many reasons for the deaths, which had their origins in "post-Maoist China" and accused police, immigration authorities and seafood merchants of complicity.

Mr Bromley-Davenport asked: "Was it manslaughter or was it a tragic accident? Was it manslaughter, or is the Crown's casting of the case in that mould, if not wholly misconceived, just plain wrong?"

He said the deaths were partly due to the "adverse weather" on the night of the tragedy, and the treacherous tides.

"If they had come out at the proper time, they may still have come unstuck.

"An hour could make all the difference, five minutes could make a lot of difference.

"This was a disaster waiting to happen."

Mr Bromley-Davenport said Lin Liang Ren had lied during his questioning by police but claimed it was only because he was concerned about securing a visa to stay in the UK.

"The reason he told these lies was he was worried about his visa because he had applied for it to be returned and he hadn't heard about it," he said.

A total of 21 bodies were recovered after cocklepickers were caught by the incoming tide off Hest Bank in Morecambe Bay, Lancashire, on February 5, 2004. Two more have not been found.

Ren, 29, a Chinese immigrant living in Liverpool, denies 21 counts of manslaughter by gross negligence.

He also denies perverting the course of justice and facilitation - helping people breach immigration law - along with his 21-year-old girlfriend Zhao Xiao Qing, from Liverpool.

Lin Liang Ren's 31-year-old cousin, Lin Mu Yong, from Liverpool, denies facilitation, as do father and son David Anthony Eden Snr, 62, from Irby and 34-year-old David Anthony Eden Jnr from Prenton, Merseyside.